Left Hand of the Jhereg
The Left Hand of the Jhereg is a group of Jhereg sorceresses, primarily women, who provide usually illegal magical services to the Right Hand of the Jhereg and whoever else can afford them. Vlad Taltos has used the "Bitch Patrol's" services on more than one occasion during that time when he was running his area. He, and his friends, were also targets of their sorcery on more than one occasion. The Left Hand operates mostly independently of the Right Hand and the Jhereg Council, and has its own interests and agendas. History The Left Hand lie was founded in the 14th cycleVlad's conversation with Kiera at Dzur Mountain in Dzur Chap 3 by a vaguely known association of five women, two of which were of the House of the Athyra, two of which were Dragons, and of one which was a Dzur, and all of which were at least accomplished sorceresses. The nature of their activities lead them into illegal areas, and also to their eventual arrest. In the famous trial that followed they were unable to prove their innocence, resulting in their expulsion from their respective Houses along with various punishments, from branding to flogging, However, the Empire was unable to prove their guilt, and so that was the limit of their punishment. The women bought titles and joined the Jhereg. It is at this point that one of the Atyhra founders suggested they attempt to organize a business within the house for financial reasons, but was not successful in convincing the Jhereg Council. At a later point, the Athyra died of chronic indigestion, and the remaining members simply set up a separate organization from the main Organization with their own structure and enforcement arm.Vlad's conversation with Kiera at Dzur Mountain in Dzur Chap 3 To this day, the Left Hand operates mostly independently of the Jhereg Council, although they appear to have at least a nominal allegiance to the House of Jhereg itself. The Left Hand's relationship to the Right Hand is at times tenuous; recently there were worries that the two factions were going to go to war with each other. Business Members of the Left Hand generally specialize in sorcery, but some members may also specialize in Elder Sorcery, Psychics, Necromancy, or even Eastern witchcraft. When Vlad was still operating within the Jhereg, he often spent quite a bit of gold on their services, especially during the war with Laris when he needed protection for his business ventures. Individual members of the Left Hand also research new forms of sorcery, and have developed magical techniques unknown to other powerful sorcerers, including even Sethra Lavode herself. However, these techniques are kept very secret, even from other members of the Left Hand. The Left Hand maintains its secrecy by organizing themselves rather like an Eastern coven of witches. To date, those wishing to infiltrate to learn their secrets (usually curious Athyra) have been denied. While the Left Hand generally does not engage in the typical business activities of the Right Hand (extortion, theft, untaxed gambling and prostitution, etc), there was recently a group led by Caola that attempted to take control of these activities in South Adrilankha. This group was rebuffed in their efforts, however, due to the intervention of Vlad Taltos. Notable Services *Sorcerous attacks *Sorcerous protection *Spells to counter other's personal defensesUsed on Morrolan in Jhereg *EavesdroppingMentioned in Dzur *Revivification *Sorcerous prevention of RevivificationUsed on Morrolan in Jhereg *Devices to bypass sorcerous securityVlad used one in Loraan's keep in Taltos *Cheating devicesMentioned in Dzur *Teleport blocks *Teleport traces The Jhereg woman who provided Mario with his famous elder sorcery grey mist spell he used to disable the Orb during the assassination of Emperor Tortaalik was presumably part of the Left Hand. Known Members *Caola *Triesco *Crithnak *"Nasista" See Also * Right Hand of the Jhereg * Jhereg References